We love to give gifts to each other because we are created in the image of our heavenly Father who loves to give good gifts to his children! Whether it is an expression of appreciation for a job well done or just to show gratitude for someone as a friend, the tradition of giving gifts extends throughout history. It is an expression of love that is uniquely rewarding because we vicariously experience the joy of the receiver!

The Christmas Dinner should be a royal feast — filled with joy and mirth! On Christmas Day we are remembering what God gave to us — the offer of eternal life in Jesus Christ! It should be a day filled with love, joyfulness, thanksgiving, and remembrance for what God has done.

We’re always busy — preparing food, planning activities, wrapping presents, making schedules. This season is a time of bustling and exhausting activities! But even amid the flurry of excitement surrounding the next few days, let’s pause from our preparations and consider the night Jesus was born.

Home: That most singular of places, a sanctum where we should be best known, the residence of life at its deepest and most intimate, the outpost from which the family, that beautiful institution, reaches out like a ray of light from a window and extends the beauty and power of Christ’s dominion into every aspect of culture. …

When I was about nine years old my family took a trip to New England. One of the most memorable moments happened while driving through an old neighborhood at night. Almost without exception all of the homes displayed candles in their windows. I'll never forget the welcome it conveyed, how it drew us in, the warm light on the streets, the glow coming from each window. …

Stately, well-proportioned, vividly green and alive. Bedecked with warmth and light and beauty. Surrounded with the smells and imagery and memories of one of the most beloved times of year. The Christmas tree is a commonly recognized piece of Western culture in our era. All manner of symbolism and legend has been attached to its presence during the Christmas season and there are many interpretations of the story of its origin.

Remember that word “HARK!” Ever wonder what you were singing? “Hark! the herald angels sing…” “Hark! how the bells, sweet silver bells, all seem to say throw cares away…” An odd old expression of the English language long since fallen out of use, the word is yet perfect in its own way. A command: LISTEN! Give your ears to hear! Pay close attention! Mark what I say! Eagerly pay heed! We sing it all the time around Christmas and never give it a second thought. But it calls out demanding an audience. What you are about to hear is important. It is life!

Over two millennia ago, the Lord Jesus Christ disrupted the very firmaments of heaven and earth as God incarnate; when he came to earth in human flesh and dwelt among us. This event was so extraordinary that the entire world separates history into two time periods: the time before his birth — before Christ (BC) — and the time after his birth — in the year of our Lord (Anno Domini, AD).